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View Full Version : Please help me 1911 guys!!!!!!



shark31
09-26-06, 23:55
I have a series 80 that I bought about five years ago, and didn't fire more than probably 5 mags through it before I left for basic and then overseas. Fast forward 4 years later and when I got back from Iraq I decided to buy a Kimber TLE just because I could:rolleyes: . I had many feeding problems for the first 500- 600 rounds that went through it, but finally got it running smoothly, when the finish began to rust on the slide. After refinishing it I decided that I don't shoot my pistols enough to warrant spending all that money getting an already expensive pistol up to snuff, so I sold it and went back to my Glocks and have been happy shooting and carrying my 23 for the past 2 years.

So here's the problem, I'm planning on getting a .45 suppressor in the near future, but can't seem to find a host weapon that I like. The Glock 21 is about huge as crap, I'm not an HK fan in general but their .45's are gigantic too. The XD shows a lot of promise, but I don't know how easily finding a threaded barrel would be, and I'd like to wait and hear a range report from someone else first about using it in conjunction with a can. This leads me back to the 1911.

So I am sitting here racking my brain about spending the money to get a grip reduction on a brand new 21, just to see if it will fit my hand and I can use my beloved Glock as a host gun, when I remember my mothballed Series 80 I still have at my Dad's house.

When I bought it, I had no knowledge of anything 1911, I just knew that it was a Colt and that it would hold it's value. After a little research (feel free to correct me, it wasn't that much research:D) I feel like I know less now than I did before. I'm beggining to feel overwhelmed and need some guidance like a toddler. I figure that my budget is around $800 as that's how much a brand new 21 with a reduction and night sights would end up setting me back. So, what I want to know, layed out in a more organized fashion:
1. Is the series 80 a good platform or would putting $700 bucks into a gun I paid $500 for in the first place be a total waste? Also what if anything would need tweaking in order to get it to run with most ammo types? (flared ejection ports and enhanced extractors)
2. I remember reading that some series 80 pistols had a weak barrel bushing, since I have to get a new barrel anyway, should I replace the bushing? (remember it's primary job is a suppressor platform)
3. Cosmetically I like the looks, but would like to get a beavertail grip, more ergonomical hammer, and oversized and ambidextrious controls, who would be a good person to do the work? (quickly and professionally)
4. I'd also like to get a more durable finish than the factory bluing, is there any forseeable problems with this, and what do you reccomend?
5. Could a good 4-5 pound trigger job be accomplished with the added safety features of the series 80?
6. What is a good source for threaded barrels with a left hand twist 13 1/2x1?

Thanks for any help, all this information is beggining to make me lean back towards the Glock even as I type, HELP ME DIVERSIFY MY PISTOL COLLECTION!

rob_s
09-27-06, 04:23
I think you'd be better off with the Glock. There are precious few people in the 1911 'smithing world that are both good and fast. hell, most are bad and slow.

I'm also a big proponent of sticking with one platform for rifles and one for handguns. For me it's the 1911 and AR, but it sounds like for you the handgun platform should be the Glock.

VA_Dinger
09-27-06, 08:21
Shark31, your lucky that we have the following highly respected 1911 gunsmiths as members of M4Carbine:

Ned Christiansen
http://www.m-guns.com (http://www.m-guns.com/)

Steve Morrision
http://www.marsguns.com (http://www.marsguns.com/)

Dave Berryhill
http://www.berryhillguns.com (http://www.berryhillguns.com/)

Although all three have huge waiting lists I'm sure one or more of them will be along when they get the chance to point you in the right direction.

You could also contact M4carbine member Bigbore (AKA: Steve of Adco Firearms). I seem to remember him owning a suppressed Rock River Arms 1911.

trio
09-29-06, 23:22
lets see...I love the 1911 platform...im not a huge fan of glocks, so you lose me there...so take this as you will...in order

1) the series 80 is a fine platform...the difference between a series 70 and series 80 is the series 80 trigger safety designed to prevent the pistol from firing unless the trigger is pulled...this safety actually effects the trigger, and many people say that because of that it is hard to get a good, pure crisp pull on the series 80 1911...I have had both series 70 and series 80 guns with great triggers...i think for the right gunsmith it doesnt matter....

as far as feed issues, shoot it first, but the most common things done are lowering and flaring the ejection port and polishing and throating the feed ramp....if you really want to go custom with this gun there is a good chance that a lot of your internals get replaced anyway...but if not you are likely fine with the colt extractor...a lot of folks complain about the reliability of MIM parts, but I believe Colt has avoided them, so should be fine there....so, lower and flare...polish and throat...

2) I dont remember hearing about bushing issues, but it is easy to replace...Novak's will fit a National Match bushing for under 100 bucks and it generally takes less than a week if i recall correctly

3) As far as replacing the parts, all the things you have listed you could probably do yourself....i have replaced safeties (grip and thumb) hammers, etc on 1911s myself quite easily...IIRC Wilson parts are pretty much based on Colt guns, so their "drop in" parts drop in very well...the springfield guns require fitting and a jig for things like beavertails...of course you wont do it as well as a smith, but it would be done now, and be fully functional...

4) As far as finishes, Robar is good, but I would go Hard chrome...all the way...it is the best finish, durability wise, for a gun today...and for hard chrome i would go virgil tripp all the way...for 210 bucks you will have your whole pistol hard chromed, barrel included (i dont how the threading changes the price/process) in 10 business days...and his Cobra Chrome is rapidly becoming an industry standard...i have an ed brown kobra carry there as we speak

5) again, I think the right pistol smith can get a perfect trigger with a series 80 gun...VA Dinger has list some of the best in the business for you...I think Yost Bonitz could pretty much do anything they wanted with a 1911, regardless of the base platform for my 2 cents...

having said that...it is easy to take the series 80 safety out of a series 80 gun and turn it into a series 70...if a bumbling bozo like me can do it, you could too, and any smith you had tuning your gun certainly could...

6) here i cant help you, never been into the supressor market myself...

im sorry you had trouble with your kimber...i am currently 3-2 bad kimbers to great kimbers....once you get a sweet 1911, though, it will spoil you on other guns...there is a reason the platform is still going strong after almost 100 years....

and lastly

GOOD LUCK!

Dave Berryhill
09-30-06, 10:49
It's not a problem getting a good trigger pull on a Series 80 unless you're looking for a 1.5 lb trigger for your IPSC competition pistol. For a 3.5 to 4.5 lb trigger, it's not an issue. If your gunsmith says that it's a problem, find another 'smith.

The only "problem" barrel bushings were the collet bushings. These are easy to identify if you remove the bushing. Instead of being solid they have 4 "fingers." Most of the factory solid bushings are a little loose and having a match bushing fit to your stock barrel will probably give you a bigger increase in accuracy than anything else.

shark31
10-01-06, 21:12
Thanks guys, the reason that I had trouble is because the local 1911 smith told me that I was trying to get him to do something Illegal by fitting the threaded barrel. He then said that he wasn't a class three gunsmith and it would be illegal for him to do anything to it and that it was illegal to have silencers and he wanted to know what I plan on doing with a silencer...........................I then proceeded to tell him that the ATF didn't think that it was illegal for me to own them, and that unless it's a full auto or integrally silenced pistol, then it's not considered a C3. Then he mumbled about how threaded pistols are a gray area.

I promptly left the store as I can't stand people that call me a criminal.

So as luck would have it, my C3 dealer smiths 1911's for a hobby:D . So he's babysitting it for right now to get it shooting with a threaded Jarvis Barrel he already had laying around(he stocks lots of stuff). The only other part that we had to replace right off the bat is the barrel bushing with the four fingers as it was cracked. I think right now that I'm going to get him to put an Ed Brown gunsmith required beavertail, Wilson ambi thumb safety, and get him to do a bevel job after handling several guns at the gunshow today. Beyond that, I don't know what else is needed and will leave it up to his judgement, he builds some nice pistols that he says are incredibly reliable. He says that it will be good base and filled me in on all the workings of the pistol, I feel much better now after he gave me a reliability guarantee that was pretty crazy and he'll do it for super cheap:D

Once again thanks for the advice for a newbie.

shark31
11-10-06, 13:43
I got to shoot it a little last weekend with an EVO-45. Sweet shooter!

My major complaint right now is sights. I NEED new sights in a very bad way, the factory sights suck balls. Who dovetails sights in a timely manner? What would you guys recommend for CQB sights that would be high enough to clear a can?

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m182/shark31/DSC00160.jpg

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m182/shark31/DSC00166.jpg

davemcdonald
11-10-06, 15:02
How about a Sig?


http://www.sigarms.com/images/catalog/product/220JCP_TB_right.jpg

Dave

shark31
11-10-06, 15:53
How about a Sig?


http://www.sigarms.com/images/catalog/product/220JCP_TB_right.jpg

Dave

Dave,
I hadn't seen that before, but I'm still very shy about DA/SA guns, I have a very hard time getting up to speed and staying there with the training.


Plus I now would have to get rid of the Colt to fund it. Just out of curiosity, how much would that thing be worth with the Jarvis barrel included? I still have all the original parts, but I wouldn't need any of them and would like to sell it all.


While I do love the 1911, and how it shoots, I find myself looking for extra magazine capacity that the JCP designs offer. Are all offerings going to include a threaded barrel? Maybe I should sell the 1911 and wait untill my can gets here to determine the type of pistol I will be switching to.